Melges 24s return to San Francisco

The 2013 Melges 24 World Championship will be hosted by the San Francisco Yacht Club. The event will take place from September 28 through October 5 2013, one week after the America's Cup Finals.

"We look forward to hosting Melges 24 racers from around the globe in what promises to be a year filled with spectacular racing on San Francisco Bay," said San Francisco Yacht Club Commodore Robert Heller.

"The Melges 24 was made for the conditions of San Francisco Bay, which represents one of the greatest places in the World to sail," added Harry Melges, CEO of Melges Performance Sailboats, "a World Championship here is a not to be missed event."

"I look forward to personally welcoming our friends from around the world to a marquee World Championship in San Francisco in 2013," said Christopher Farkas, San Francisco Melges 24 Fleet Captain.

The San Francisco Yacht Club, the oldest yacht club west of the Mississippi, has for over a decade regularly organised Melges 24 regattas on San Francisco Bay, hosting the Fleet's 2010 US Gold Cup, the 2011 Pacific Coast Championship and the North American Championship in 2012, as well as the annual finale of the Melges California Cup Series.

"Our last visit to San Francisco for a Melges 24 World Championship was in 2003 and I am delighted that a decade on we will once again return to this Mecca of performance sailing for a World Championship. The combination of great sailing waters, top class race management and the San Francisco Yacht Club's legendary hospitality are a major draw and we look forward to a record breaking attendance." commented International Melges 24 Class Association Chairman Riccardo Simoneschi.